A Story of Water and Fire
by Lord of Shadowrealm17
Summary: A fan fiction of Zutara! It starts when Zuko joins their group, and follows mainly the emotions Katara and Zuko struggle through, and instead of Kataang, Zutara is what happens.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one:

Zuko had just saved them from the assassin he had assigned to kill them. Now, he stood in front of them, awaiting their judgement. He should have been able to relax. The Avatar had allowed him to join their group. The water tribe boy and the blind Earthbender also accepted him, but his heart beat faster, his whole body on edge while he waited for her to pass judgement. In that moment he realized he didn't just want to be accepted into the group, he wanted to be accepted by the Waterbender. Her opinion matter most to him. She agreed reluctantly, and that reluctance stung Zuko. At least he was accepted into their group. He was shown a room, away from where they camped. Sokka awkwardly tried to welcome Zuko. As he left the room, his sister stalked right up to Zuko. She was right in his face, almost yelling as him. He stared wide eyed at her angry, and scared face. But there was something else there too. He made another realization. The girl in front of him, was the most dangerous girl he knew. Maybe the most dangerous person, except from his father. Zuko dated a girl with dangerous aim, and was the older brother to a girl who could summon lightening. But this girl in front him, the girl he had seen save lives, laugh, and be the first girl to show him compassion. This girl would do anything to help her friends. Anything. And that dedication made her dangerous. She ended with a threat towards him, and huffed from the room. He hung his head, the shame of all his mistakes rose in him again. Worse than ever. That made him angry. He was mad at himself, for needing her approval, for letting her cause him to feel even worse about himself. 'I don't need her, I don't need some water tribe girl liking me, I DON'T CARE WHAT SHE THINKS OF ME!' He wanted to yell, but even as he thought it, he knew it wasn't true. That made him even angrier. He wanted to scream and set the bed on fire. Instead he took a deep breath and climbed into bed. He laid awake, staring through the window at the moon. He thought about a cave. A place under Ba Sing Se. He thought of the underground river. He stood on one side, Katara on the other, and they fought. It felt like he was there again. Fighting Katara, but this time for her trust, not her death. He thought og how ashamed he was, and how ashamed she made him feel. He remembered his Uncle's face when he chose Azula over him. His Uncle that had always been there for him. No matter what. If his Uncle was here, he would be able to gain their trust easily, even Katara's. Zuko eventually slipped into sleep, where he dreamed of drowning. Drowning in his shame, in his failures. Drowning by the hand of Katara. He woke just as the sun broke the horizon, gasped and struggling for breath.

When Zuko had first approached them, Katara's first thought was to forgive, to let him join the group, maybe even hug him. But that feeling lasted less than a second. Instead, she refused. She hated him. She hated him more than his father. She remembered when they were trapped in a cave. He seemed so hurt and lost. He hadn't hurt her then. She remembered him say that the war took his mother too. After Toph returned with burned feet, Katara hated him even more. She felt betrayed by him, and she didn't want to feel that way ever again. After he saved their lives from Combustion man, the group accepted him, but she couldn't. 'This is a trap.' She thought. After he was in his room, she knew she had to scare him from betraying them. She stalked up to him and threatened him. He looked at her with fear and sadness and something else. As she left the room, she hesitated outside the door. He had looked so sad and lost and innocent. 'He's not innocent. He's tried to kill us!' She thought. After Ba Sing Se, she had felt betrayed, and she didn't know why. He had never promised the help them, he never promised he wouldn't try to kill them. He tried to kill them again. She shouldn't of been surprised, but she was. The pain of his not betrayal, hurt more than she let on. She never told Sokka, or Aang or Toph about how she offered to heal his scar, how she trusted him. It hurt even more than what his father has done to her, and the world. Katara raced to her room, and buried her face into the bed, the betrayal fresh. Hot tears threatened to fall. "Stop it." She chastised herself for almost crying over Zuko. Prince Zuko who had hunted Aang, who had tried to kill them. She took a deep breath. She wanted to trust him again, she wanted to believe he had changed. Oh! How badly she wanted him to have changed, and her want for that, how much she cared made her angry. 'I DON'T CARE ABOUT ZUKO, I ONLY CARE THAT HE DOESN'T HURT MY FAMILY!' She thought. Breathing deeply, she stared up at the moon. It's gentle light and power washing over her. 'Help me understand why I feel this way, feel this strongly when it comes to Zuko, please Yue. Help me.' The power she felt from the moon calmed her. She felt powerful enough to defeat Zuko if he tried anything. She slipped off into sleep. She dreamed of fire surrounding her, suffocating her, caressing her skin, and burning flesh away. She screamed as fire engulfed her, and pain overwhelmed her. She woke with a start late in the morning.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two: 

Katara was pacing back and forth. Constantly looking to the sky, hoping to see her brother and Zuko descend from it. "They're obviously not on a fishing trip. Why would Sokka just leave in the middle of the night? And why would Zuko go with him?" Aang collapsed into his sleeping bag, already done the routine Zuko asked him to do, twice. Toph tried to imitate a bullfrog croak so Aang would do it again, but Aang knew it was her. "How are you two not worried?" Katara demanded.

"Relax, Sugar Queen. Sokka will be fine. He's a sword master with a boomerang. He's not helpless." Toph said from her place on the fountain where she had been picking at her toes.

"Besides." Aang said. "He's with Zuko. Zuko is a powerful Firebender. Sokka will be fine."

"How can you trust Zuko so much? He's done nothing but try to kill us!"

"And now he is on our side." Aang said. "Zuko and I went to find the Sun Warriors, and I came back in one piece." Aang yawned and pulled a blanket over him. "As long as we are not doing anything, I'm going to sleep."

"No." Katara said. "We are taking Appa and going after them. What if Zuko kidnapped Sokka and will kill him if we try to defeat Ozai? What if they're trying to distract us, and killed Sokka so we are over come by grief? What if-" Toph interrupted her.

"Calm down, Sweetness. Twinkle Toes is right. Zuko hasn't lied to us since he joined us. he wouldn't just change his allegiance on a whim."

"Yes, he would!" Katara snapped. She took a deep breath and said it again. "Yes he would. He did in Ba Sing Se."

"What?" Toph and Aang said at the same time.

"When I was in that cave with Zuko. He was Azula's prisoner too. He told me that he lost his mother in the war too. He didn't hurt me while we were down there. He was sad, and lost, and confused. I offered to help him. I offered to heal his scar. I was going to, except that's when You." She pointed at Aang. "And his Uncle dropped in. It was only minutes after that that he tried killing us again." They were quiet for a while.

"Just because he was going to let you heal his scar, doesn't mean he was on our side, but he's on our side now." Aang said. "Besides, even before he joined us, he made some right choices. Remember when he was the blue spirit and saved me from that fire general. I know he was just trying to kidnap me, but still. He saved me, and he will return Sokka safely." Anger built in Katara. 'They just don't understand.' She thought. She was also angry with herself. She told herself she hated Zuko, but what she couldn't admit is she was just as nervous for his safety as for Sokka's. Zuko was powerful, but everyone had limits. 'I DON'T CARE ABOUT HIS WELLBEING, ONLY THAT HE DOESN'T HURT MY BROTHER!' She wanted to scream. She did scream, but she screamed at Aang. "IT'S NOT ALWAYS ABOUT YOU!" She said. Toph started laughing, but Aang wouldn't look at her. He was hurt. Katara felt immediately guilty. "Aang... I'm so sorry, I didn't mean. Aang? Aang!" Aang had stood up and ran out the window, his staff extending its blue wings.

"Good job Sugar Queen."

"It was an accident!" Katara cried.

"I know." Toph said. "Sometimes not getting angry is too hard." Katara felt the same way she did all those months ago when she first started teaching Aang Waterbending, and he was better than her to begin with, and she snapped at him. "He'll get over it." Toph said. "He's just being a big baby."

"You really think Sokka and Zuko will be OK?"

"I do." Toph smirked. "What do you mean Sokka AND Zuko?" Katara had started to Waterbend different shapes from water in the fountain to calm herself.

"What?"

"You said Sokka and Zuko."

"I did?" Katara panicked. 'It was just a mistake' She told herself. 'I Don't care about Zuko, I can't.'

"Are you sure you hate him because he betrayed us, or because he betrayed your trust? Are you sure your anger is even hate and not something else?" Toph asked.

"What else could it be?" Katara almost snapped.

"I don't know. Maybe you, like Sparky? Your heart does beat faster whenever he's around, whenever he's in a conversation."

"Yeah. That's called hate and anger." Katara claimed.

"Sure." Toph said before lying across the border of the fountain and falling asleep. Katara looked at the shape she was making. It was a heart.

It wasn't until in the afternoon that Aang returned. He forgave Katara, and said he spent the day walking the bottom of the ravine that the air temple was in. And, it wasn't until the next day that Katara could relax. At first it looked like a fire nation war ship, and she was convinced Zuko had betrayed them, but the air balloon didn't fire at them. It simply landed, and Sokka and Zuko both stepped out. Katara felt so relieved to see her brother, and even more relieved to see Zuko. "So did you get any meat?"

"The best kind." Sokka said. "The meat of family and friends." When Katara saw her dad and Suki exit the air balloon, she was ecstatic. They had rescued them! Zuko and Sokka had brought her dad back. She ran and gave him a hug. "Dad!" she cried. She looked over to Zuko. She was going to thank him, but she couldn't. Instead she gave him a venomous look. All her anger and worry and fear of the past couple days all channeled towards him.

Zuko felt his heart warm and lighten as Katara's face lit up at the sight of her dad. He thought he had finally gained her trust, or at least her gratitude. He now had the whole gang's trust. He had Katara's thanks. But, She only gave him a venomous stare. A look of anger and hate and something else. He finally had admitted to himself when he was in jail, that he cared about her opinion. That he cared about her. She was the first besides his Uncle to show him compassion, she offered to help him. She cared for him after everything he'd done, and he had turned around and stabbed her in the back. No wonder she hated him, and wouldn't trust him. He just hoped he could get her to trust him.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three: 

The morning began with an attack on the air temple. Rubble flying everywhere. 'Azula.' Zuko thought as he scrambled to his feet. Everyone was in a panic. Aang airbent another bomb away, but more were coming. Zuko looked for Katara, he wanted to make sure she was OK. She was staring up at a piece of ceiling about to crash down on her. "Watch out!" he screeched as he ran for her as fast as he could. He toppled her out of the way. He heard the debris fall several feet from them as they rolled out of the way. He felt Katara's body against him. He held on to her, hoping she wouldn't be crushed. They stopped rolling with Katara under his arm.

"What are you doing?" She screeched.

"Keeping rocks from crushing you." He said. He had excepted her to be thankful, but he shouldn't have been surprised.

"Okay, I'm not crushed, you can get off me now." She forced his arm off her and got up. She was stronger than she looked.

"I'll take that as a thank you." He said to nothing. He saved her life, and rescued her dad, what else did he need to do? He stood. Everyone else was running to a hole in the wall, but Zuko stood there staring at the airships.

"What are you doing?" Aang asked him.

"Go ahead, I'll hold them off." Zuko said, hoping he could buy them enough time. "I think this is a family matter." He ran to the edge of the temple. Someone behind him screaming for him to stop. "katara.' he thought. 'Maybe doing this will finally gain her trust.' He saw his sister smiling manically down at him from the top of an airship. "What are you doing here?" He asked her.

"Isn't it obvious?" She asked. "I'm about to celebrate becoming an only child!" He took a deep breath. After throwing a few fire balls he took a few steps back, took a deep breath and ran, he then leaped from the temple with all his might. He threw fireballs at her as he jumped. He missed her airship and fell . He hit the deck on another air ship that was rising. Fire nation soldiers climbing out onto the deck. One by one he fought and blasted them off the ship. He hoped the others got away, that Azula hadn't hurt Katara. He was relieved to see Appa flying through the air. As the airship rose it became level with Azula's. He dodged her lightening and sent columns of fire towards her, until one of her lightening strikes and his fire columns hit and blasted them both backwards. Next thing he knew he was falling. He saw hands reaching up for him and reached to grab them. The hands pulled him safely onto Appa's back. It was Katara. Her face wild and frantic, their hands still together, but her face changed to the usual anger and hatred and she scooted away from her and looked behind her. Zuko looked behind her at his falling sister.

"She's not going to make it." He said. With Azula gone, a lot of their problems would be solved, but she was still his sister, but he didn't need to worry. She propelled herself using firebending to the cliff face. "Of course she did."

As Katara sat around the fire, she thought of the events of the morning. He remembered the feeling of Zuko's muscular arms wrapping around her as he saved her life. She wondered where her dad was, if he was okay. She didn't want to be separated from him again. Before that, Zuko took on Azula and the airships himself. His actions were both brave and stupid, but she couldn't help but be impressed. As she saw him falling, she panicked, scared he might die. She screamed his name, but it was lost in the wind. She reached out her arms as far as she could. When she felt his warms hands grab her arms, she tightened her grip, scared he would slip away and pulled him onto Appa with all her might. She stared at his scared frightened eyes. She wanted to hug him and remind him he's alive, but her worry for him scared her. She let go of his warm hands before scooting away and looking behind her at Azula. She came back to the present when everyone around her was laughing at something Zuko said. "Ha-Ha." She said sarcastically. "To Zuko!" Sokka said. "Who knew after all those times he tried to snuff us out, today he'd be our hero?" Everyone cheered except for Katara.

"I'm touched." Zuko smiled. Katara liked it when he smiled, which was completely irrelevant. "I don't deserve this." He said.

"yeah." Katara said. "No kidding." She got up and walked away from the group. She found a jut of land over the ocean. The moon and sound of waves calmed her.

"This isn't fair!" She heard Zuko say. "Everyone else seems to trust me. What is it with you?!"

She turned to face him, furious at his remark. "Oh! Everyone trusts you!" She screamed. All her resentment. All her bottled up feelings or rage and betrayal. "I was the first to trust you! Remember?! Back in Ba Sing Se! YOU BETRAYED ME! Betrayed all of us!" She wanted to cry, wanted to be told it was alright. Wanted him to apologize.

Zuko had been thinking about that night in Ba Sing Se. He wished he could go back and make a different decision. He wanted to make it up to her. "What can I do to make it up to you?" He asked. She stalked right up to him.

"You really want to know?" Katara asked. For a moment to wanted to hug him, for a moment she wanted to kiss him. "Maybe you can reconquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King, or bring my mother back!" And she stalked away.

Zuko slipped off Appa. Katara right being him. Aang was right there on the dock. "Did you?" Aang started.

"I didn't kill him." Katara stated. She wish she had, but she couldn't. Aang started his little 'I told you so' speech. it set her teeth on edge. "I didn't kill him, but not going to forgive him either." Katara stalked away from Aang as saw Zuko turn around to look at her. He had helped her find her mother's killer. Helped her find out what happened. He was there for her. He was willing to kill for her, but he didn't make her kill. He was so understanding, so loyal and determined to help her. She approached him and wrapped her arms around him. Katara buried her face into his shirt and let some the tears fall.

Zuko was surprised to find Katara hugging him. He slowly wrapped his arms around her and hugged her closer to him.

Katara was reluctant to leave. She was tired of hating Zuko. He was about to do anything for her. She trusted him, just as much as the others, maybe even more. His embrace was warm and safe. She felt like he understood her, and she understood him. She had seen him angry and obsessive, at his worst. He had seen her angry and unhinged, at her worst. And that only made them like and trust each other more. Zuko was there for her though all of it. Finally she pulled out of the embrace and walked to her tent.

Zuko lingered outside Katara's tent. She finally trusted him and accepted him. He remembered how wild and bent on vengeance she was. He could relate to that. That anger and obsession. It was scary and dangerous. His realization of how dangerous she was was proven even further when she controlled the new captain of the southern raiders. He did everything he could for her. Even in the end when she decided to spare him, he was ready to kill him for her. Now, he had to make sure she was alright. "Hello?" He said as he entered the tent. She was sitting on a pile of blankets, wearing a pajama robe that was short and thin. staring at her mother necklace in her hands. She turned to look at him. Her eyes red and her cheeks wet. He looked her in the eyes.

"You must think I'm weak because I'm crying like a child." She said as she patted the blankets next to her. Zuko sat down next to her. He laid one leg straight out where it brushed hers, and bent the other one, his arm across the knee. "Crying doesn't mean your weak, it only means you have feelings."

"Thank you." It hurt him to see her crying like that.

"I'm Sorry." He said. She gave him a funny look.

"For what?"

"For betraying you at Ba Sing Se, for bringing up your mom and making you face her killer." he said.

"You didn't make me do anything."

"You wouldn't be crying right now if you weren't thinking of your mom, and what she did for you. That's on me." She laughed through her tears.

"No, it's not. If It wasn't for you, I'd still be angry. Now I can move on." There was a moment of silence. "What happened to your mother?" Katara asked him. Zuko looked away from her. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's alright." Zuko said. "After my Uncle Iroh's son died, my Uncle..." The mention of his Uncle made Zuko miss him and remember betraying him. "He returned from the war. Ozai tried to get his father to give him the entitlement of Fire Lord instead of Iroh, even though Iroh was older. My Grandfather was angry at Ozai for suggesting it. In the middle of the night, Azula came to me saying the Firelord told dad to feel the same loss Iroh did and must kill his oldest son, me. I didn't believe her, but the next morning my mother was gone, and my Grandfather dead, and his last wish was for Ozai to be firelord." Zuko could feel her blue eyes looking at him. He turned his head and looked at those blue eyes.

Katara didn't know what to say. She saw a tear begin to form in his almost golden eyes. "Do you really think your father was going to kill you to be firelord?" That was believable and Zuko nodded. At least her father loved her. "And that your mother gave herself to... Save you?"

"She came to me that night Katara, telling me that whatever happened I had to be strong." Zuko could feel a tear drip down his cheek. Katara instinctively lifted her hand to wipe away his tear, but he grabbed her wrist. She looked at his golden eyes and he looked at her blue ones. She started to lean closer to him, wanting to comfort him. She was so close she could feel his breath.

Katara was so close to him. Her eyes seeming to reach into his soul. "I'm Sorry about-" She started to say. He didn't know what he was doing until he felt the pressure of her lips on his, and he near it was him. He pulled away immediately. He had violated her, and broke the trust he had just gained.

"I'm Sorry!" He cried as he stood and left the tent in a hurry. 'Stupid, Stupid. Now you've done it.' He thought.

Katara didn't mind. The kiss was less than a second, and he apologized after so worried. She didn't mind, he was warm and more considerate than Aang was. "Zuko, wait!" She called. And followed him out the tent. "Zuko." She ran to catch up and grabbed him arm, turning him around. "It's okay Zuko. You did nothing wrong." She smiled. "You know, you really quite adorable when you flustered and worried." He turned bright red.

"No I'm not." Katara couldn't help but chuckle. All the anger, and worry and fear she had been carrying around started to lift. Started to. "I'm Sorry about your mom." She said.

"Me too." He was quiet for a moment until her corrected himself. "I mean, I'm sorry about your mom." She gave him another hug.

"Do you miss her?" Katara asked.

"Yes." he said.

"Me too." Katara said. They stood there under the moon for a while, just hugging. Zuko was so warm and safe. Eventually he let go of her.

"Get some sleep." Katara nodded and rubbed her eyes. As she headed back towards her tent and turned around.

"You too." Before she went into her tent. Zuko stood there for a moment. Sad at the loss of his mom, but that pain seemed to have had lifted a little, because of Katara. He was happy to had seen her smile and laugh. To have gained not only her trust, but something more too. He wandered off to his tent.

ang

Aang had been sitting on a boulder thinking, when he heard voices and he slunk behind it. He watched and listened to Katara and Zuko talk. He watched them hug. 'I never had Katara hug me like that.' He thought. He could see something forming between them. His face grew hot, and started to hate Zuko again. A fiery and angry hate. He was the one that always there with her! Always loved her. Zuko had tried to kill him and her, sure he changed, but what was Katara thinking?! He slunk off into his own tent, regretting the choice of letting Zuko into the group.


End file.
